Wednesday: Watch local candidates debate live right here

Assembly candidates in the 85th and 86th districts will square off in a public debate Wednesday in Wausau, and the Wausau Daily Herald will offer exclusive video coverage.

The debate will be from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the UW Center for Civic Engagement, 625 Stewart Ave. in Wausau. The event is free and open to the public.

The candidates for office in the 85th Assembly District are Mandy Wright, D-Wausau, Pat Snyder, R-Schofield, and Jim Maas, L-Rothschild. In the 86th Assembly District, candidates are Dennis Halkoski, D-Weston, and John Spiros, R-Marshfield. All five candidates have agreed to appear.

The candidates will face questions about jobs and the economy, health care, protecting the environment and more. The debate is sponsored by the Wausau Daily Herald and Wisconsin Public Radio.

The 85th Assembly District covers all of Wausau, Rothschild and Schofield and much of eastern Marathon County. The 86th Assembly District covers Weston, Rib Mountain and much of the western part of the county.